Palestinians return to ruined Hebron homes after Israel’s 10-day siege

Israeli forces withdraw from Hebron neighbourhoods, revealing extensive destruction.

About 3,300 Palestinians have returned to their homes in Hebron in the occupied West Bank after more than a week of forced displacement, but residents are now faced with a difficult cleanup as withdrawing Israeli forces left behind destruction in homes and neighbourhoods.

The Ein Deir Bahha and al-Jalda neighbourhoods underwent a punishing 10-day assault after two Israeli soldiers were shot dead in the city on October 23. Two Palestinian suspects were also killed. Hundreds of Palestinian families were forced out of their homes, able to carry few belongings, and Israeli forces prevented any residents from returning.

On Monday morning, Hebron Governor Khaled Dodin announced that families could finally access their properties after Israeli soldiers withdrew. But residents arrived to find widespread demolitions, vandalism and other forms of tampering across their neighbourhoods.

The displacement severely impacted local families, scattering them across different areas. Fahd Ahmaro and his family were dispersed across four neighbourhoods in Hebron after being expelled from their home in the Khallet al-Maghariba area.

“We were driven out of our homes and houses. Words cannot describe what happened,” Ahmaro told Al Jazeera. “We were in an unbearable hell, and all of that fell upon us suddenly and without prior notice and without any right.”

“Praise be to God … that he returned us to our paradise.”

Some homes in his neighbourhood were destroyed. Others had their doors blown off their hinges and their contents smashed, he said.

Samer Mujahid, a resident of the al-Jalda roundabout area, said Israeli soldiers raided his home and gave him 10 minutes to take his children and leave for 18 days.

When Mujahid tried to secure more time to pack enough clothing for his family during this period, the army issued an ultimatum.

“If I return to you after 10 minutes and you have not left, I will break your legs,” a soldier told him.

The task now for Hebron residents and civil associations is to fix the destruction left behind by Israeli soldiers. The Support and Relief Committee formed a field team to assess the extent of the damage to public and private properties.

Hebron municipal council member Muammar al-Awiwi said targeted zones are also suffering from power outages and intermittent water supplies.

The military operation resulted in the demolition of 15 facilities, including three homes, two of which belonged to the suspects in the attack that killed the two Israeli soldiers. At least 327 shops have been shuttered, and about 80,000 students were deprived of education during their 10-day displacement.

The Hebron municipality estimated that direct economic losses from the siege stand at more than 12 million shekels a day ($3.8m). Damage to Hebron’s infrastructure exceeded 6 million shekels ($1.9m) while the city’s health and environmental sectors suffered losses of 500,000 shekels ($158,146).

“The tragedy is great. Some residents returned and cannot live in their damaged homes as a result of the bombing or deliberate sabotage by the occupation army, such as destroying furniture, bedrooms and bathrooms,” al-Awiwi told Al Jazeera.